REWIND

A roundup of news from the Business section during the past week

SDG&E rate increase acquires panel’s OK

Utility bills will rise in September after the approval of a four-year rate increase totaling more than $500 million for customers of San Diego Gas & Electric.

A typical household will see monthly gas and electric bills rise about 11 percent to $132.02, up from $118.52, according to the California Public Utilities Commission. SDG&E was granted a 7.6 percent revenue increase starting in 2012. The hike will be collected retroactively, so many bills will rise by more than that percentage to catch up.

Qualcomm’s in-flight service gets a lift

Federal regulators pushed forward a proposal from San Diego’s Qualcomm to use satellite spectrum to provide a ground-based, cellular Internet service to passengers on commercial jets. Qualcomm wants to use 150 to 250 cellular base stations on the ground to serve aircraft over North America, allowing faster in-flight Wi-Fi speeds for passengers.

Carnival explores adding Baja port

San Diego’s cruise ship industry has taken a big hit in recent years as Mexico has fallen out of favor as a vacation destination, but plans by a major cruise line to look at investing in a new port south of the border could portend a revival here.

Carnival Corp., which at one time had a much larger presence in San Diego, is exploring the possibility of spending $150 million on developing terminals for two new cruise destinations in Mexico, one of which would be in Baja California — Puerto Cortés on Isla Santa Margarita, about halfway between Ensenada and Cabo San Lucas.

Arena’s Belviq gets final DEA approval

Arena Pharmaceuticals’ weight-loss drug Belviq has received the final regulatory approval necessary to begin sales. The drug will be the San Diego company’s first product on the market.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration rated Belviq as a Schedule 4 controlled substance, indicating a relatively low risk of abuse. Belviq was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2012, but DEA scheduling was needed before Belviq sales could begin.

Bridgepoint beats estimates on earnings

San Diego’s Bridgepoint Education beat Wall Street analysts’ forecast for earnings and revenue in the first quarter of this year despite a drop in student enrollment compared with last year.

The for-profit education company, which is facing accreditation hurdles, blamed the enrollment declines on a new strategy aimed at attracting students who are more likely to complete their degrees. It earned $23.4 million, or 43 cents a share, on revenue of $222 million in the quarter. That’s down from a profit of $33 million and revenue of $250 million a year earlier.